5th Grade Summer Homework Packet Dear Parents, Each summer the fifth grade teachers challenge their students to do academic work to prepare for the coming year. Doing academic work over the summer prevents the summer slide that often happens when kids are on summer break. This summer, our packet includes some reading, writing, math and science. When we return to school in the fall, students who have completed their packet and turned it in on time will vote on and be part of an incentive party. All packets are due Wednesday, August 26, 2015. A preview of the packet is attached to this letter. The entire packet will be available on Perkins website all summer. We will also send a complete packet and supply list home on June 2, 2015. We hope that you will encourage your fifth grade student to be engaged in academic work this summer! If you have any questions, please contact us. Sincerely, Fifth Grade Teachers Mrs. Mayhew [email protected] Mrs. Vasallo [email protected] Mrs. Viegas [email protected] Mrs. Ware [email protected] _________________________________________________________________________________________________ SIGN & RETURN ALREADY COMPLETED Please sign and return this portion to your fourth grade teacher. Keep the top for your reference. This is a SIGN & RETURN DOCUMENT – failure to return it could result in a behavior report. Student Name: Parent Name: Parent Signature: Mrs. Mayhew [email protected] Mrs. Viegas [email protected] Date: Email 1: Email 2: Mrs. Vasallo [email protected] Mrs. Ware [email protected] 5th Grade Summer Homework Packet Reading Read About Time: A First Look at Time and Clocks. Use sticky notes or a notebook to summarize new information from the reading. You may use your favorite graphic organizer if you would like. The book will be provided to you on Move Up Day. It is very important that you RETURN the book when we return to school in the fall. Please take very good care of these brand new books. To earn the summer incentive, you must pass the Reading Counts quiz by Wednesday, August 26th. Please log minutes at www.scholastic.com/summer. Use the login information from Mrs. Brenn. Writing After reading “Homework: The Great Debate” and “Is Homework Helpful or Harmful?” write an essay to answer this prompt: Write an essay in which you give your opinion about whether or not homework is
necessary for students. Use information from the passage in your essay.
Read the passages carefully so that you can: plan your response, write your response, and revise and edit your response. To earn the summer incentive, you must turn in your writing piece by Wednesday, August 26th. Math Complete Prerequisite Math Questions 1-­‐12. Show your work. Be ready to check when we return in August. Due Wednesday, August 26th. Credit will not be given if work is not shown. Knowing math facts is an important foundation to understanding math problem solving. Please practice your facts this summer using xtramath.org. Your unique login will be included in your Move Up Day packet. Science Watch Brain Pop videos and take quizzes at brainpop.com. Login: perkins_es, password: bppinellas. Mrs. Mayhew [email protected] Mrs. Viegas [email protected] Mrs. Vasallo [email protected] Mrs. Ware [email protected] 5th Grade Summer Homework Packet Homework-­‐The Great Debate Students tend to think that teachers enjoy assigning homework, ruining their afternoons and weekends with
tedious assignments. Of course, this is not really the case. Many teachers dread grading homework as much
as students hate doing it! So, why assign homework? Is it beneficial or harmful? Homework has both
benefits and drawbacks. When considering assigning homework, teachers should carefully reflect on the
purpose of the assignment. The list of pros and cons below can help guide the teacher’s reflection.
Pros
I know right now you’re thinking that there can’t be any real benefits to homework. Well, below are a few
reasons to assign homework.
Time
There seems like there is never enough time to cover all the material in class and especially not enough
time for special assignments. Independent work, like reading a book, or special projects, like complete a
science fair project, does not always get accomplished in class. These assignments can be given as
homework to allow for more time in class for other activities.
Extra Independent Practice
Everyone knows that in order to learn, students must practice. Homework allows students to practice the
information they learned in class. Many classes require skill-based repetition such as memorizing times
tables in math or reading practice in English. Homework is a great way to emphasize such skills.
Individualized Remediation
Homework can be individualized so that students get extra practice on the skills they struggle with. This
allows teachers to provide remediation without using class time. Doing the assignment at home can also
help the student avoid the stigma that can come with doing something different in class.
Pre-teach Vocab
Learning new vocabulary is essential to many classes. Some studies say that students need to be exposed to
a new word at least 17 times before they learn the word. Homework can be used to expose students to new
vocabulary terms before they are used in class to help pre-teach the words. This could be done through a
reading assignment or by looking up definitions and writing them in their own words.
Life Skills
Assigning homework and deadlines helps students learn to manage their time, keep a schedule, and stay
organized. For some students, even taking something home and bringing it back the next day is a
challenging, though essential, skill to learn.
Cons
There are just as many cons for not assigning homework. I know you want an excuse to not have to grade
homework, so let’s look at some of the drawbacks.
Time
Students do not have full control over their time. Family obligations, extra-curricular activities, rules (such
as bedtime), and jobs may keep them from completing homework. Students are in school now longer than
they ever have been in our country’s history. If they can’t learn everything they need to know while in
school, perhaps the amount of time wasted in the classroom needs to be considered.
They Won’t Do It or Someone Else Will
In almost every class, some students will not complete the homework. Usually, it is those very students
who need the extra practice the most! This puts the struggling students even further behind the class. A
variation on this is when students turn in assignments that they did not personally complete. Cheating off
the Internet is incredibly easy for students to do. Parents who want their students to appear successful may
‘help’ them do the assignment or the student could copy the work from a friend.
Homework is a hot-topic in education. There are both pros and cons. After reading both major arguments
for and against homework, where do you stand?
Mrs. Mayhew [email protected] Mrs. Viegas [email protected] Mrs. Vasallo [email protected] Mrs. Ware [email protected] 5th Grade Summer Homework Packet Is Homework Harmful or Helpful? -­‐Pros and cons of homework by Terri Akman The value of homework has been debated for ages, oftentimes with kids and parents taking opposing sides. Policies differ among schools and even individual teachers about the amount of time kids should spend on homework each night, whether or not to grade at-­‐home output and if parents should be encouraged to help. Why homework is helpful? “Homework is important because it’s an opportunity for students to review materials that are covered in the classroom. You need to practice in order to become proficient, “ says Sharon R. Stallings, principal of Signal Hill School in Voorhees, NJ. When students are unable to complete the homework, “that lets the teacher know they need more help in the classroom.” “If teaching and learning is effective, the opportunity for application of classroom learning should happen outside of school hours as much as in school,” says Jean Wallace, CEO of Philadelphia’s Green Woods Charter School. Green Woods mom Megan Keel is all in favor on her kids getting homework: “It’s never too much and it reinforces what they learned during the day.” Keel has seen both of her sons, 7th-­‐grader Grady and 4th-­‐grader Otis, struggle at times with homework, but she’s also witnessed “aha” moments. “When they’re just learning to read, homework can be a challenge,” she says. “But once the kids are confident in their schoolwork, they can do it more independently.” When Homework is Harmful Alfie Kohn, author of The Homework Myth, is an outspoken critic of at-­‐home assignments. “Homework is frequently the source of frustration, exhaustion, family conflicts, a lack of time for kids to pursue other interests and, perhaps most disturbingly, less excitement about learning,” he insists. “It may be the greatest single extinguisher of children’s curiosity.” Kohn points out that no research has ever found any advantage to assigning homework -­‐-­‐-­‐ of any kind or in any amount -­‐-­‐-­‐ in elementary school. “It’s truly all pain and no gain,” he believes. “There is little reason to believe that homework is necessary and no support for the assumption that it promotes good work habits, independence or self-­‐discipline.” Wallace disagrees. “A gradual release in the amount of homework over the K-­‐through-­‐8 or K-­‐
through-­‐12 years can better prepare students for building necessary skills of time management and the responsibility for their own learning,” she says. Mrs. Mayhew [email protected] Mrs. Viegas [email protected] Mrs. Vasallo [email protected] Mrs. Ware [email protected] 5th Grade Summer Homework Packet Overall Lead Transitions Ending Organization Elaboration Craft Spelling Punctuation Grade 5 Structure I made a claim or thesis on a topic or text, supported it with reasons, and provided a variety of evidence for each reason. I wrote an introduction that led to a claim or thesis and got my readers to care about my opinion. I included a cool fact or jazzy question. I also gave my readers information about what was significant about the topic. I worked to find the precise words to state my claim; I let readers know the reasons I would develop later. I used transition words and phrases to connect evidence back to my reasons using phrases such as this shows that… I helped my readers follow my thinking with phrases such as another reason and the most important reason. I used phrases such as consequently and because of to show what happened. I used words such as specifically and in particular in order to be more precise. I worked on a conclusion in which I connected back to and highlighted what the text was mainly about, not just the preceding paragraph. I grouped together information and related ideas into paragraphs. I put the parts of my writing in the order that most suited my purpose and helped me prove my reasons and claim. Development I gave reasons to support my opinion that were parallel and did not overlap. I put them in an order that I thought would be most convincing. I included evidence such as facts, examples, quotations, micro-­‐stories, and information to support my claim. I discussed and unpacked the way that the evidence went with the claim. I made deliberate word choices that had an effect on my readers. I reached for the precise phrase, metaphor, or image that would convey my ideas. I made choices about how to angle my evidence to support my points. I tried to use a scholarly voice and varied my sentences to create the pace and tone of the different sections of my piece. Conventions I correctly spelled words important to my topic. I used word patterns and a dictionary when needed. I used punctuation accurately. Not Yet? Starting To Yes! Mrs. Mayhew [email protected] Mrs. Viegas [email protected] Mrs. Vasallo [email protected] Mrs. Ware [email protected] 5th Grade Summer Homework Packet Mrs. Mayhew [email protected] Mrs. Viegas [email protected] Mrs. Vasallo [email protected] Mrs. Ware [email protected] 5th Grade Summer Homework Packet Mrs. Mayhew [email protected] Mrs. Viegas [email protected] Mrs. Vasallo [email protected] Mrs. Ware [email protected]